Joint Economic Development Districts were created in 1993 to allow Ohio municipalities and townships to work together to develop township land and share taxes that are collected in that district. And they have to include at least one township. Now there’s a bipartisan bill at the Statehouse that could ease rules for these JEDDs in place throughout Ohio, allowing more communities to participate.
Sen. Bill Blessing (R-Cincinnati) and Sen. Catherine Ingram (D-Cincinnati) live in neighboring districts in the Cincinnati area. Blessing represents Evandale. Ingram represents Lincoln Heights. Interstate 75 bisects the two communities. Evendale has a lot of commercial revenue. Lincoln Heights doesn’t.
Blessing explained those two entities would like to share revenue with each other through a Joint Economic Development District but they can’t under present law. Blessing said those two entities would be allowed to have such an agreement under the new law under consideration.
“This would allow your local governments to organically partner with each other to further their interests in a way that is mutually beneficial. It’s going to be a wealthier municipality helping out a poorer municipality which benefits everybody,” Blessing said.
Ingram said there is a specific area in mind where the JEDD could be used.“It allows for that area to be developed and for both municipalities to benefit from it,” Ingram said. “There’d be income tax revenues that would come in and those dollars would then be divided between those municipalities.”
The bill would not require annexations of property.
A similar bill was introduced in the last general assembly but failed to pass after other controversial measures were attached to it.
